Confused Together
by Not2Cool
Summary: Princess Eyia from Alfheim is staying with the Odinsons for some months on Asgard - everything seems to be going okay until Thor develops a crush on Eyia. But Thor isn't the only one... and besides, Eyia has always had more in common with Loki
1. Princess From Alfheim

Eyia had lived in Asgard nearly a full month now - only eleven more to go… With her father off on business in Midgard, and her mother having died long ago, the alf prince had asked if the Asgardians would look after his daughter during his absence.

Being to good friends her father and King Odin were, the arrangements were settled in a matter of days, and teenage Eyia found herself plopped down in a bedroom in the same hallway that the Asgardian princes' chambers led off of.

The boys were her age, roughly - Thor a little older, Loki a little younger, but all in all they might have been mistaken for siblings were one not to pay mind to Eyia's pale skin and narrow, pointed ears.

Being raised by the same parents along the same principles, Eyia would have thought the boys should have a lot in common - oh, was that wrong.

Thor would sneak out in the night with his 'friends' while the most rebellious thing Loki ever did was stay up past bedtime reading - never leaving the soft comfort of his blankets.

Eyia was no stranger to battle, and often sparred with her friends back in Alfheim, but she found much more peace in the pages of spell books than she did in blades and talk of warfare; this was only one of many things that separated her and Thor.

It was almost something Eyia regretted, pushing Thor away, since Loki never tried to take the place his brother left behind - the younger god kept to his chambers, only leaving for solitary adventures in the nearby woods and for meals, the latter of which he escaped from as soon and as swiftly as he possibly could, leaving Eyia no room to take him up in conversation.

Frigga was as good a foster mother as could be. She was sweet, and kind, and caring, and scolded Thor whenever he made fun of magic a little too loudly - though whether this was for her own or Loki's sake, Eyia could never be sure.

Months came and went, and when the year was almost over King Odin received a message from Eyia's father - he begged they keep his daughter for him yet a few months longer, as an unforeseen conflict had arisen, and needed resolving.

Eyia took the news with a half-hearted sigh, lowering her eyes and chewing a little more slowly, simply shaking her head defeatedly when Frigga asked if she was alright. Even Thor seemed to take hint at that, and stayed unusually quiet the rest of the meal.

Only two weeks after said message arrived did the unthinkable happened - Thor called Eyia beautiful. And not in the mocking, annoying older brother kind of way.

Eyia knew she was pretty, but it was rather a shock to realize that the prince of Asgard would view her in a romantic way. Had he always thought of her this way? Or was it just now occurring to him that she was available?

She concluded that he was most likely just trying to make one of the village girls jealous; he flirted with them far too often for his own good.

But as the days passed and the compliments droned on, Eyia began to take his affections more seriously, and she wasn't too fond of them.

Sticking out her tongue at him whenever he greeted her in the morning as 'flowering beauty' did not phase him, to her dismay - nor did ignoring him all through meals, or hiding in the library whenever he would come looking to spend time with her.

Neary three weeks later Eyia was completely baffled as to how he had kept up his admirations this long - she had never seen him stick to a village girl for more than five days, certainly nothing like this!

She opened her door one morning to find a handful of flowers set somewhat neatly on the floor before her.

With a sigh Eyia nudged the flowers from her path with her shoe, proceeding on her path to breakfast. Frigga was already in a chair, and Eyia slipped into the seat on the Queen's right, praying to all gods that it would be Loki who sat on her other side and not Thor.

But alas, Thor entered the room first, and took the dreaded seat, Loki trailing in minutes later, quiet as a cat, and open book pressed to his chest as he slipped into a chair on Frigga's left.

Frigga eyed the trio, gaze settling on Eyia for a moment longer than the boys before she shrugged slightly, and waved for the food to be brought in.

Later that day there was a knock on her door - Eyia cracked it open, resisting the urge to roll her eyes when Thor's overly hopeful smile met her.

"Oh." She said. "Hello, Thor."

"Hello!" Thor greeted. "We are going hunting in a bit - would you like to come?"

Eyia raised an eyebrow. "Was it not you who told me ladies were not suited for hunting?"

His smile faded slightly, then perked again. "Sif is coming."

"I appreciate the offer," Eyia gave him a weak smile. "But I do not wish to come."

"But-"

"I am well where I am." Eyia said. "I will see you later, Thor." And before he could respond she closed the door. Shaking her head, she returned to the book she had left on her couch.

The hours passed, and Eyia turned the last past of her book with a long, heavy sigh, setting the hardcover aside to stand and stretch.

It would be dark within the hour - Eyia traced the now familiar corridors of the Asgardian palace to the library to exchange her book for another.

She found Loki there - not reading, but sleeping, curled up on a chair with a book held in limp hands, the tip of his thumb barely keeping his place in the text.

It was a surprise, that was certain; Eyia had never seen Loki sleep before.

With a frown she padded to him, her naturally light alfen steps crossing the distance to gently tug the book from his grasp. She slipped a bit of paper in to hold his place and set it on the little table beside his chair.

She got a strange urge to rearrange his tousled hair, but… no. That would just be weird.

Eyia left him, turning to find the shelf on which her own book belonged, but she didn't make it three meters before there was a light cough behind her.

Eyia twisted to look at him - at first he didn't notice her; he shifted to a more comfortable position and gave a small yawn, almost seeming like he were about to fall asleep again when his half closed eyes caught her's.

Loki sat bolt upright, his feet leaving the chair and settling on the floor immediately, finger-combing his hair quickly, all the while blushing furiously. "Uh…" He looked down, fidgeting with his hands in his lap. "How… how long have you been here?"

"Not long," Eyia said softly. She nodded to the table at his side. "I saved your place for you."

Loki cast the book a quick glance. "Uh… thank you."

They stared - Eyia at Loki, Loki at his lap - a short time longer than awkward.

"I'll um…" Loki fumbled to collect his book and tuck it under his arm as he stood. "I'll… go now…" He hurried out of the library, head down, blushing even more deeply than before.

The door swung shut rather loudly behind him.


	2. Arguments

The next day Eyia groaned to find yet another messy handful of flowers outside her door.

Loki was frozen in the hallway a few meters down, having just left his room, looking up from his book to blink confused at her.

"Is something wrong?"

Eyia sighed. "It's Thor." She explained. "I daresay he thinks himself in love with me." She again swept the flowers aside with her foot before stepping out into the hall. "I do not suppose you could talk to him?"

Loki eyed her a moment. "You know Thor - it is near impossible to have a meaningful conversation with him."

"I would not be so harsh," Eyia said. "But I admit you are right… tell me he has done this before? Surely he must grow bored with me soon?"

Loki gave a little shrug. "I do not pretend to understand how my brother works."

Eyia gave another, heavier sigh. "I just wish he would _stop_. It grows worse each day, I swear!"

Loki nodded slowly, his bright green eyes drifting between her and the flowers on the floor at a rather half-awake pace.

Eyia shook her head, closing the door to her chambers behind her. "Nevermind. I will have to wait him out, I suppose."

At least this meal Eyia slipped in between Loki and Frigga without much trouble, leaving Thor trapped on his mother's opposite side with a somewhat overdone pout.

Eyia avoided his conversation further by prodding Loki into discussing the properties of transfiguration spells; it was a far more interesting topic than Thor's endless battle retellings anyhow.

Apparently the awkwardness of the situation had finally settled in on Loki - he hardly looked at her though they spoke, keeping his head down and blushing whenever Eyia said his name.

Frigga looked on with a mix of confusion and amusement, sitting mainly quiet in her seat as she observed the teens.

The meal ended with Eyia trailing after Loki to the library, hoping Thor was insulted enough not to follow.

"Thank you." She said as the library door fell shut behind them. "For… letting me sit with you."

He blushed again, offering a small smile. "It's not a problem."

"Well… thank you anyways."

They drifted into silence; Loki settled in his chair to read, and Eyia milled around a few minutes before deciding on both a book and a seat.

Loki glanced up as she lifted her feet from the floor to match the way he curled in the chair across from him, looking back down as soon as they made eye contact.

Eyia shrugged to herself and opened her book.

They sat like that - in a comfortable reading silence - for what must have been hours. And it was hours, they realized, when they were only disturbed by Frigga's call to midday meal.

Without a word they marked their places and stood, walking side by side back to the banquet hall.

Again Eyia sat between Loki and Frigga, again she engaged Loki in quiet conversation, and again Thor sat with a large frown and without entertainment. Frigga's amusement in the situation only seemed to have increased since breakfast.

Eyia and Loki spent the remainder of the day together in the library, again only leaving for supper, and still rarely speaking outside of the banquet hall. It was nice, though.

Three more days passed in roughly the same pattern, until one morning Eyia opened her door to find not flowers on the ground, but Thor standing there.

Eyia blinked at him a moment. "Good morning Thor." She greeted.

"Eyia," Thor shifted on his feet. "Could you please tell me why you avoid me? Have I offended you? Have I done something wrong?"

Eyia sighed. Well, there was bound to be a confrontation at some point. "Thor," she said. "We… need to talk about the flowers."

"Do you not like them?" Thor asked worriedly.

"Thor," Eyia rubbed her forehead, tired of the whole situation. "This has to stop. The big eyes, the invites on hunts, the flowers… all of it."

"What would you have me do?" Thor blinked, obviously hurt. "I… I love you, Eyia. I love you like i have never loved anyone! You are beautiful, you are talented, you are-"

"No!" Eyia held up her hands. "No, Thor. I will not have this. No love confessions, no compliments, no! I do not want this!"

"You… do not love me?"

"No, Thor." Eyia said. "I do not love you."

Thor stared at his feet a long moment. "And Loki?"

Eyia blinked. "What about him?"

"Do you love Loki?" Thor asked. "Is this why you cannot love me?"

"What are you talking about?" Eyia demanded.

"You talk with him instead of me!" Thor said. "You spend the days with him in the library! You walk with him to meals and sit beside him and talk of spells and magic together like it were the most common thing in the world!"

"So?" Eyia challenged. "Am I not allowed to spend time with a friend?"

"Friends do not require entire days on end!" Thor cried.

"This friend is different."

"Then he is not a friend!" Thor accused. "Tell me, Eyia, do you really love Loki or do you pretend to so you may spite me?"

"I do not love Loki!" Eyia cried.

"You admit it then?" Thor declared in a bitter triumph. "You would only do this to anger me? To hurt my heart further?"

"No!" Eyia exclaimed. "That is not what I said and you know it!"

A _thump!_ had both Eyia's and Thor's heads cutting to the side.

Loki stood just outside his door, staring in absolute shock at them, his book lying on the floor where his slack hand had dropped it.

"...Loki?" Eyia asked softly. "How long have you been there?"

Loki took a stumbling step backwards. "L...long enough." He stammered. He fumbled with the handle on his door, disappearing back inside. The lock clicked behind him.

Eyia's harsh eyes cut to Thor. "Now look what you have done." She hissed.

"Loki has stolen you from me." Thor muttered angrily. "I cannot care if I hurt his feelings."

"I was not yours to be stolen." Eyia spat. "Loki is my friend and now you have him thinking who _knows_ what about me!"

"I speak only truth!" Thor insisted. "I love you still, Eyia, as I loved you before! Is that yet false?"

"It is." Eyia said. "You are in love with my alfen skin and large eyes and long hair - not with my heart as you claim to be. Not leave me so I may repair whatever damage you hast done to my only actual friendship around here."

Thor's mouth opened and closed, but he could think of no reply. Casting her a last glare, he stalked from the hallway.

Eyia found herself slamming her own door behind her as she crossed to collect Loki's book from the floor and smooth out the pages where it had landed open.

Drawing in a shaky breath, she knocked on his door.


	3. Still Good

"Loki?"

The mumbled reply from within did not bother to make itself discernible.

Eyia sighed, chewing her lip undecidedly. She knocked again. "Loki? Please open the door. Thor's gone - it's just me, I swear."

This time Loki didn't even grace her with a mutter.

Eyia leaned her forehead against the wood, closing her eyes. "Loki… Loki, please. We need to talk, and we need to talk now. Otherwise we're not going to be able to look at each other for who knows how long, and I don't have anyone but you, and I really don't want things like this between us…"

Silence.

"Loki…" Eyia straightened, and just in time too - the door flew open without warning, revealing Loki. The teenager seemed to be expressing several emotions at once across the space of his small, pale face, each so blurred into the next that not a one could be properly identified.

"You meant it." He said, almost breathlessly, almost a question.

"Meant…?" Eyia searched his twisted features in a new level of concern.

"You really don't love Thor."

Eyia blinked. "Of… of course I don't! What, did you think I'd been hiding from him all this time because I _liked_ him?!"

It was meant to be a sarcastic question, but the look on Loki's face took it otherwise.

"Wait…" Eyia stared at him. "You… you actually thought…?"

Loki shrugged, his eyes dropping to her shoulder when he could no longer bring himself to meet her silver gaze.

"Why?!" Eyia cried. "Thor is arrogant and self-centered and chews with his mouth open half the time and never brushes his hair and can never learn when to keep his mouth shut or when to back off or when to slow down and - ugh!"

Loki's cheeks were flushed, but a small smile crept across his lips despite. "Believe me," he murmured, "I know his faults as well as you."

Eyia forced herself back to the present - back to standing outside Prince Loki's rooms, back to figuring out where the hell her and Loki's friendship was or wasn't headed, back to that warm red that was sliding up her own cheeks at this whole thing…

"Nay," She sighed, choking on a laugh that came from some part of her she hadn't known existed. "You know him far better than I, I cannot even pretend to deny that."

Again Loki's gaze dropped - it was at her knees now. "Perhaps." He hummed, that confusing mix emotions once again contorting his face into something that surprisingly was horrifying.

"Loki…" Eyia said. "Even I'm not entirely sure what's going on here, but…" She didn't know what to say. Should she say anything? Maybe awkward silence was better than more awkward words.

No, this had to be said. If it wasn't, it would nag at the back of Eyia's skull for the rest of forever. And for alfs, forever was a rather long time.

Okay, maybe she was being overdramatic, but still… this was going to bug her. And besides, now was good a time as any to speak.

"I like it." She waved a confused but certain hand to indicate the area between them. "Whatever… _this_ is… It's good."

Loki's eyes snapped to her's, the swirl of emotions there on his skin, but his eyes nothing but hopeful. "It… it is?"

"I mean…" Eyia felt her own blush deepening. "I hope it is. Is… is it? Is it good?"

Loki blinked at her a minute. "It… I think it is."

"Good." Eyia managed a smile. "You… up for eating breakfast?"

Loki frowned. "Won't Thor be down there?"

"You know him better than I and yet you ask." Eyia held offered him and awkward hand. "He'll be off in the royal armoury sulking, pilfering food from the kitchens if he's feeling up to it. Come on - Frigga will miss us."

Loki's already flushed cheeks burned scarlet as he rested his pale fingers across the palm she held out.

With a smile Eyia curled her long alfen fingers around his smaller asgardian ones. "Still good?" She asked.

Loki nodded, still scarlet, but a small smile pushing through the swarm of confusion. "Still good."

THE END! Hoped you guys liked! If you haven't noticed this is part of a little series where I'm doing random short stories surrounding Loki, so if you have any ideas/requests, please comment! Thanks for reading! :)


End file.
